


Books and Dust

by foundyouforever



Category: Marble Hornets
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-03
Updated: 2014-03-03
Packaged: 2018-01-14 09:54:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,849
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1261999
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/foundyouforever/pseuds/foundyouforever
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>(just a little college-era thing; could be considered AU, maybe?)<br/>When Tim isn't in class, he's working in a little bookstore in town, a bookstore that Brian just happens to wander into when looking for a book.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Books and Dust

**Author's Note:**

> Expect this to be horribly cheesy. I just can't help myself, it's such an adorable prompt idea. :)

       Tim thoroughly and genuinely loved working in the bookstore. He was the only employee (other than the owner herself), and he loved every minute of it. An avid reader himself, shortly after moving out on his own, he found himself inside this cute little two-story house-turned-bookstore very often. The owner, a lovely older woman named Eleanor, had nearly always stopped to start a conversation with him while he was in there. The store wasn't particularly busy; enough to keep the store alive and well, but not enough to ever cause anyone any inconvenience if the employee on duty stopped to chat with a customer. Tim made sure to find the time to stop in there at least once, if not twice, a week. He didn't always buy something, but he enjoyed his conversations with Eleanor, and he knew she appreciated the company. He'd stay for hours, just talking with her, and occasionally, she'd ask him for help with various things around the shop. It was usually small stuff like carrying heavy boxes of books, or moving around some of the antique couches and chairs she had scattered around the shop. He didn't get paid for it, but she always gave him a great discount on books he bought there.

       After being a regular customer there for about three months, Eleanor told him that she was looking to hire an employee to run the shop when she couldn't. She said that it was getting harder and harder for her to remain there all day, every day, and she'd like to be able to run and manage the shop from the comfort of her own home across town, and Tim was her first choice. He'd mentioned looking for a job before, so being offered a job at the store he loved was an obvious "yes." She stopped in to the store three or four times a week, but for the most part, she remained at home. She trusted him with the responsibility of running the shop himself, and he didn't prove her wrong.

       Within just a short time, he'd gotten to know many of the other regular customers. The store carried new and used books; the downstairs was reserved for newer books, the upstairs carried only older or donated books. He knew which customers preferred which sections of the store, and before long, he knew them all on a first-name basis. He still occasionally was asked where Eleanor was, how she was doing, that sort of stuff, but the customers quickly warmed up to him.

* * *

 

       Brian tried to come in as frequently as possible.

       Tim and Brian didn't know each other; they went to the same college, had a class together, and saw each other on campus almost every day, but they rarely spoke to each other. The only time that Tim could remember had been about three weeks before he got the job at the bookstore, when he was sitting at the fast-food place across the street from his next class eating his lunch, and Brian just happened to come in there too. Brian recognized Tim as the guy that sat three seats to the left of him, so he asked if Tim would mind if he sat down at his table. The place was pretty packed, and there was only one table left, but a family had followed Brian in and he wanted to save that table for them so they'd have a place to sit. Tim told him it was fine, and so Brian sat down and immediately started a conversation. Luckily, Tim had happened to have brought a book he'd bought the day before at that bookstore, and that's what Brian chose to draw his attention toward. He asked with genuine curiosity where Tim had found that book; it looked fairly old and Brian had actually been looking everywhere for a copy of the same book. Tim told him about the little bookstore in town and how it carried many older or harder-to-find books, but Tim even offered to allow Brian to borrow his copy when he finished it. After giving him directions, Tim was surprised to hear Brian say that he'd stop at that store after his next class, clearly very excited.

       They didn't talk again after that.

       Tim stood alone behind the counter of the little bookstore, checking out a book that had caught his eye this morning when he was making sure the store was straightened up before opening. It was some sort of horror novel written probably ten or fifteen years ago; something about some sort of generic monster that stalked its victims through the woods at night, nothing special, very cheesy. He'd originally picked it up because he felt a vague sense of familiarity about the figure on the cover and assumed it was a book he might've seen as a kid. Flicking through the pages, not really very interested in what the book was about, he was startled when the bell on the front door jingled, indicating someone had come into the shop. He quickly got to his feet and moved from the counter, rushing to the front to greet the customer. He was surprised to realize that the customer who had just walked in was none other than Brian himself.

       Tim had admitted to himself weeks ago, shortly after his lunch with Brian, that he definitely kind of liked Brian, and would've loved to find another excuse to have lunch with him. But he never did find the courage to strike up a conversation with him before class or one of the many times he saw him on campus. Now, Brian stands in front of him with that goofy grin, and to his dismay, Tim feels his cheeks turn red. He awkwardly greets him, trying desperately to not stutter, but Brian cuts him off before anything other than "Hey" can come out of his mouth. Brian laughs in what could only be disbelief, and greets him cheerily and confidently. He asks, of course, about what he's doing there, which Tim responds with the generic "I work here now" line, which appears to fascinate Brian.

       Tim, out of embarrassment, tries to quickly turn the conversation away from him and toward Brian.

       _"So, uhh.. can I help you find something?"_   Tim is shocked by how smoothly the words come out.

       _"Well, actually, I'm looking for a specific book. Do you think you could help me out?"_   Brian begins explaining this book he'd heard about from a friend. He goes into detail; not only the book title and author (which Tim had found very familiar for some reason) but also when it was written, and a short explanation of what the book was about.

       _"Oh! Yeah, I know what you're talking about!"_   Tim rushes back to his counter and picks up that book he'd been flipping through before Brian came in. _"I picked it up this morning before we opened because I thought it looked familiar, but I'm not very interested."_

        Handing the book to Brian, he noticed that same goofy grin, except this time, it look almost like he was trying to hide it. Looking over the covers quickly, Brian laughed. Not that loud, cheery laugh he was so used to hearing before class; but more like that laugh he'd heard when Brian realized who was working in the bookstore. Brian confirmed that it was in fact the book he'd been looking for, and Tim hurried behind the counter to ring it up. When he finished and was handing the bag to him, Brian spoke up.

       _"So, uh. I've been meaning to ask you. Do you want to grab lunch again sometime? Like, tomorrow, maybe? If you're available?"_   Brian's face goes red, and by the time the sentence was over, his voice had dropped down to a much quieter level than it had been when he began.

       Tim responded with a 'yes' almost instantly. He felt his cheeks go red with how enthusiastic he'd ended up sounding. Brian gave him a smile that was different from his usual goofy grin; one that expressed genuine happiness, and Tim was certain that that smile could've cured any illness if Brian had wanted it to. That's when Tim found himself smiling, too.

       They agreed on that same fast food place they'd had lunch together before, at around noon. Finally, they said their goodbyes, and Brian headed out the door and got in his car and left. Tim was still smiling. No, grinning. Several more customers had come in between then and when the store was to close, including one regular who remarked that Tim was sounding strangely giddy today.

* * *

       Their lunch date had been a success, and so had the next several lunch dates, and before too long, the dinner dates. When Brian had asked him to lunch that day in the bookstore, Tim wasn't completely sure what his intentions were. He didn't know if he meant it as a friendly hangout, or some kind of date. It didn't matter to him, though. He was just glad that he was able to hang out with Brian as frequently as they did. However, Tim was fairly certain that Brian's intentions were of the romantic sort when as they got up after finishing their dinner in some little diner, Brian held Tim's hand as they walked through the parking lot to their cars. Brian had smiled and blushed a little, and all Tim could think about was how weirdly soft Brian's hands were (but he knew he was definitely blushing).

       After that, Brian began to hold Tim's hand at any given opportunity. At the table as they ate their lunch, as they sat together in the movie theater, as they walked to their cars... any time he could, he did. He also began to show up at the bookstore as often as possible. He rarely made a purchase, but he would sit there for hours at a time and just talk to Tim. He made it very clear that he wanted to spend time with him, and Tim definitely wasn't going to oppose that. Brian would usually come in after class and tell Tim all about what kind of shenanigans occurred on that particular day.

* * *

 

       Tim could say, without any sliver of doubt, that he absolutely loved bookstores. He loved books, he loved this store, and he loved Brian. Without any sliver of doubt, Tim could say that getting hired at this little bookstore was absolutely the best thing to ever happen to him. This tiny little two-story bookstore across town from his apartment was easily his favorite place in the world. Not only because he loved bookstores, but because he loved Brian, and he knew without a doubt that the only reason he and Brian were able to really start their relationship was because Brian had just happened to wander into this little store to find some cheesy horror novel.

       Tim wasn't sure if it was possible to feel as if you owed a store your life, but that's how he felt about that little bookstore.


End file.
